For the ninth iteration of the world’s most radically open art event, Kendall College of Art and Design of Ferris State University’s (KCAD’s) The Fed Galleries @ KCAD will unveil an exhibition that explores the gap between our authentic experiences of reality and the artificial experiences we encounter daily through a never-ending and ever-evolving barrage of media.

Opening August 29, Society of Spectacle | KCAD + ArtPrize Nine unites six nationally and internationally recognized artists whose work defies traditional expectations of art while simultaneously embodying the power of art to inspire viewers toward meaningful engagement with challenging social issues. Together, their work creates an immersive experience that KCAD Curator of Exhibitions Michele Bosak says will challenge viewers in a variety of ways.

“This exhibition asks us to consider ways in which authentic experiences are being replaced by representations of authentic experiences,” says Bosak. “From news media and social media to films, television, music, and more, we are being constantly bombarded with media from all directions; the question is, how is that affecting our ability to think critically about the society we’re living in?”

Two-time ArtPrize participant Jonathan Brilliant returns to Grand Rapids with his most audacious and far-reaching project yet. With “Brilliant Does ArtPrize” Brilliant aims to reframe the conversation around contemporary art as fun, active, open, and inclusive by going out into the streets of Grand Rapids and engaging ArtPrize viewers in a variety of unexpected ways. Those encountering Brilliant may find themselves involved in impromptu conversations about contemporary art. Or, they may find themselves contestants on a mock game show that epitomizes ArtPrize’s spirit of exploration and inquiry into what art is and why it matters.

Canadian artist John Naccarato brings his work at the intersection of augmented reality technology and art to ArtPrize Nine with “DAY for NIGHT.” The interactive piece brings the experience off of the gallery wall and into the city at-large, inviting users to create their own unique fictional narratives using a free mobile app that generates narrative elements based upon users’ GPS location. As users explore ArtPrize, they’ll encounter new layers of the narrative and supporting augmented images, audio recordings, and text, forming a rich sensory experience that both questions and revels in future possibilities for human-technological interaction.

New York-based artist Le’Andra LeSeur’s piece “Searching” deconstructs the media’s portrayal of police brutality and questions how our memories shift and shape future experiences. Through silent “video portraits” of African Americans, LeSeur challenges viewers to contemplate how different people are portrayed in news and social media, causing them to come to terms with their own experiences and perceptions as they relate to those portrayals.

Liss LaFleur is among leading LGBTQ artists who are using their work to investigate and stimulate dialogue around the fluidity of gender and identity. Based in Texas, LaFleur was nominated for the prestigious Lumen Prize in 2016, and was part of the Ford Foundation-funded OUT FOR CHANGE initiative at MIT Media Lab that explored transmedia activism.

In “YOU BELONG TO ME,” a single female figure is projected through curtains of pink fringe, lip synching the original lyrics from 50s doo wop hit, “You belong to Me” as a looping performance, with the sound slowed down so the original female vocal deepens in pitch and becomes androgenized. The piece addresses gendered social conditioning by using video and sound to illustrate how repetition and standardization can solidify power structures.

Ohio-based artist Zane Miller’s Two-way Protocols” is an interactive installation comprised of two large suspended cubes constructed with two-way mirror. Viewers enter the interior of the cubes and encounter a repetitive, mirrored environment that is spacious, isolated, and ephemeral. The interactive piece aims to enforce the contrast between perceptual and physical experience of space, tapping into conversations surrounding self-awareness, public vs. private space, and voyeurism, which are all central components of culture in the 21st century.

“We’re excited to see how ArtPrize viewers will react to the far-reaching multisensory experience this exhibition provides,” says Bosak.

Related Events:

· On September 12 at 6:00 p.m., Bosak will give a curator talk leading interested viewers through the various pieces in the exhibition and their thematic underpinnings.

· On September 21, Jonathan Brilliant will give a gallery talk from 11:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.

Both events are free and open to the public.

Society of Spectacle | KCAD + ArtPrize Nine opens on August 29, 2017 and will be on display through October 14, 2017. For more information, visit kcad.edu/galleries.